In parts of Asia (mainly Taiwan and China), the Simmered “Tea” Egg is commonly sold by street vendors (also at night markets) as a savory snack food. Basically, it’s a hard boiled egg, that has been simmered or steeped in a savory broth (flavored with the spices that make up Chinese 5 spice powder, soy [...]

There are a few different types of savory Chinese or Taiwanese “pancakes” (made with dough instead of batter). One of these, is “Dan Bing,” a soft tortilla like pancake which is filled with a thin green egg omelet. The other popular type of pancake, is “Cong You Bing” (a.k.a. “green onion or scallion pancake”) – [...]

As I finished steaming these buns earlier today, my husband walked into the kitchen hungry: “Here! Try one of these,” I said. “You made Baozi?” he asked. “No, these are Nikuman,” I explained. As he bit into one, he remarked, “No. These are Chinese. These are Pork Baozi.” “No they aren’t. They are Nikuman. It’s [...]

Happy Year of the Water Snake!!! Tomorrow (starting at midnight) is Chinese New Year’s Day, the beginning of the Lunar New Year’s celebrations all across Asia and in Asian communities here in America. This year, I was thinking about what to make for Lunar New Year… year of the Snake – maybe I should make [...]

The first time I had these spiral pastries was in Westminster, CA. We were on our way back from lunch with some friends, and one of my friends mentioned wanting to stop at a bakery to buy some of these mooncakes to take home. I only bought one (just to taste)… and boy did I [...]

Earlier this week, I posted a recipe for Liu Sa Bao (Chinese Salted Egg Custard Buns). One of the main ingredients in this recipe is Chinese Salted Duck Eggs. But what do you do when you don’t have salted duck eggs? If you have a Chinese Grocery store nearby, you can buy them easily. If [...]

When we were visiting Taiwan, I found myself incredibly car-sick. I’m not sure what it was… I think a combination of jet lag, being really hungry, and being stuck in a car that was swerving side to side constantly while stopping and going abruptly (*cough* Uncle’s driving *cough*). Well, after being stuck in the car [...]

Last week, I posted a recipe for Dan Bing (a savory pancake filled with egg), which is a popular Taiwanese breakfast food – often served with a bowl of hot soy milk. (In the summer, people tend to prefer a glass of ice cold soymilk with their breakfast.) In that post, I mentioned making [...]

On our recent trip to Taiwan, we stopped at “Yung Ho Restaurant” in the Linkou District of New Taipei City for traditional Taiwanese breakfast food. This place (a popular Taiwanese chain) is open from the evening all the way through late morning – but closed during the afternoon (when they make all the food for [...]

Last week, I made homemade Chinese Mooncakes… freeform style (basically just hand shaped, using a flat acrylic stamp on the top). Those mooncakes were fun to make… but I wanted to figure out how to make them a little more intricate – so that they looked more like the ones at the bakery. So, I [...]